Ateneo de Zambonga University

The Jesuit University in Western Mindanao, Philippines

PATHFIT 4
(Dance Composition and Choreography)

Cherrie B. Alvendia
BS Psychology 2

Earl Francis C. Pasilan

1. Dance composition

Dance composition is learning how to make a dance. During the dance composition process
you explore a movement idea by creating dance movement or selecting steps in some dance
genres, then you manipulate these elements and materials of dance into movement modules of
various lengths to compose a dance. To understand how to use your tools for composition, you
need to be familiar with choreographic design principles, structures, and devices. For a dance
work to have solidarity and value, the choreography should connect to aesthetic principles that
underlie art works.
In the Movement Invention activity, you invented two contrasting dance phrases (a short series
of movements that connect into a pattern) or longer sequences. In the next activities you will
create a movement sequence (a group of movements that form a unit), and then you will
develop a movement statement (similar to a sentence). All of these movement segments
contain a beginning, a middle, and an end. Coupling movement sentences together builds a
dance segment similar to a paragraph in writing. Regardless of how long or short it is, a dance
composition focuses on the beginning, the middle, the end, and on the movement between
these points. Creating and composing the movement is one part of the choreographic process.
Checking to ensure choreographic principles underlie the dance modules requires you to
analyze your composition during the process and when it is complete. Table 4.1 lists the basic
choreographic principles that underlie a dance composition. (Human Kinetics, 2019)

2. Choreography

The art of composing ballets and other dances and planning and arranging the movements,
steps, and patterns of dancers. The technique of representing the various movements in
dancing by a system of notation. (Harcourt, 2005)

3. Choreographer
a person who creates dance compositions and plans and arranges dance movements and
patterns for dances and especially for ballets. (Random House, 2019)

4. Staging

Any temporary structure used in the process of building, esp

“Choreography as an Art”

Choreography, the art of creating and arranging dances. The word derives from the Greek for
“dance” and for “write.” In the 17th and 18th centuries, it did indeed mean the written record
of dances. In the 19th and 20th centuries, however, the meaning shifted, inaccurately but
universally, while the written record came to be known as dance notation. (Britannica, 2019)

“Choreography as a Science”

Dance science is the scientific study of dance and dancers, as well as the practical application of
scientific principles to dance. Its aims are the enhancement of performance, the reduction
of injury, and the improvement of well-being and health.
Dance medicine and science as a field of study developed in the 1970s and 80s out of the field
of sports medicine. In the early 1980s, the American Dance Festival (ADF) started including
dance medicine courses in their course work for dancers. When ADF moved to Duke University,
physicians from Duke University Hospital became interested in dancers. Then, in 1990, the
International Association for Dance Medicine and Science (IADMS) was formed by an
international group of dance medicine practitioners, dance educators, dance scientists, and
dancers. Membership of IADMS began with 48 members in 1991, and has grown to over 900
members in 35 countries as of 2016. (Wikipedia, 2016)

Answer the following:

a.Discuss the Nature of Dance Composition

a. Identify and explain the elements and principles of dance composition cite
examples of elements discussed with references to existing artistic-creative-
choreographic works.
- Space special awareness is very important towards dance. You have to be
able to manage your space so the audience is able to see you, to be aware on
where you ar while dancing. If you’re dancing with a partner, you have to
make sure you never bump into each other, unless if you need to do that on
purpose. The audience will also be curious whether you stay in one spot to
dance or move around the stage.
-Energy/Force you need energy while dancing to make your performance look
enthusiastic. Make sure you DO NOT practice too much before your
performance, because you’ll get too tired. As a result, your performance will not
look natural and your movements will be sloppy.
 -Dynamics of dance are also equally important to make a good dance. Dynamics
in music mean loud and soft, but in dance they mean how you move, the style
you move in. So for example dynamics would be if you move freely or you’re in a
war and you’re moving very tensely and worryingly.
-Emotions the body moves while dancing. It does hand movements, actions, leg
movements, etc. to express feelings and sometimes tells a story. dances have a
purpose of showing emotions. The emotions show what feelings you have, which
is pretty obvious. You don’t speak in dance though, show showing your emotions
during your dance movements is vital.
-Balance needs to have good balance when you’re dancing. This is because you
don’t want to embarrass yourself in front your audience by tripping and falling
all over the place. (Chan, 2012)

b. Explain and identify the stages of Choreographic Approach in the following

1.Thematic his is a way of teaching and learning, whereby many areas of the curriculum are
connected together and integrated within a theme.
It allows learning to be more natural and less fragmented than the way, where a school day is
time divided into different subject areas and whereby children practice exercises frequently
related to nothing other than what the teacher thinks up, as he or she writes them on the chalk
board.
It allows literacy to grow progressively, with vocabulary linked and with spelling and sentence
writing being frequently, yet smoothly, reinforced.
It guides connected ideas to follow on easily.
It is, after all, how we, as adults, learn new things. Don’t we start at a point of interest and
branch out from it like ripples from a stone thrown in the water?

The result of working the thematic approach way is that often children:
will have fun,
will be more actively involved,
will develop learning skills more quickly, as each one is connected to and reinforced by the
other,
will be more confident and better motivated,
will present fewer discipline problems. (Lawrence, 2019)
2.Musical The essence of music is based on emotion and feeling. Music is used to evoke mood
and express ideas in melodious and tuneful form. As artists, musicians need to develop
technical finesse and skill in order to convey their musical ideas or interpretations successfully
and professionally. Musical techniques involve scales and chords, the basic building blocks of
music, as well as techniques specific to the instrument being played.( Russell,2017)

3.Somatic “Practices of somatic movement education and therapy encompass postural and movement
evaluation, communication and guidance through touch and words, experiential anatomy and imagery, and
the patterning of new movement choices…to enhance human processes of psycho-physical awareness and
functioning through movement learning.” (Quoted by International Somatic Movement Education and
Therapy Association, 2009)

How to do a dance critique? What are the important elements of critiquing a dance?

Critique: an exercise involving careful judgment or judicious evaluation

Step 1: Watch, listen, and experience the performance with an open mind. Do not view the
dance as if it were a movie; you must involve yourself and be an active participant.

Step 2: Do a little research. While a critique is not a term paper, having some background
knowledge can help you put the work in context. Possible items to look up are
the choreographer, the dance, the composer, the dance company, and the
principal dancer(s). Step 3:

Get ready to write the critique. The following prompts may help you to write your critique:
Movement
 What movements did you observe?
 What body actions did the dancers perform?
 Which parts of the body were emphasized?
 Were the dancers crawling, leaping, slithering, jumping, spinning, etc.?
 Was the dance sharp or sluggish? Deliberate or explosive?
 What forms did the dancers’ bodies employ? You can relate these to letters.

Choreography
 What was the structure of the dance?
 How did the dancers relate to each other?
 Were the dancers alone (solo), in pairs (duet), in groups (trio = 3; quartet = 4, etc.)?
 Was there repeated movement? What was it?
 Was the dance a narrative (did it tell a story)?
 Was the dance abstract (without form or story)?
 Did the work have a clear beginning, middle, and end?
Space
 How did the dancers move through space?
 Where did the movement occur?
 Were the dancers more related to the floor or the ceiling?

Performance
 What were the technical and expressive abilities of the dancers?
 What made a particular performer stand out?
 Were the dancers focused and energetic?

Music
 Was the music fast or slow?
 Was the music more rhythmic or lyrical?
 Did the music evoke a specific emotional response?

Staging
 Were the costumes appropriate for the dance?
 Did the lighting focus attention or distract?
 Were there sets? Did they add to the performance?
 Was the absence of costumes or sets meaningful?

Personal Response
 Did the dance remind you of anything?
 Did the dance make you happy or sad? Why?
 What did the dance communicate to you?
 What stood out the most?

Overall Reaction
 Can you make any connections between the performance and what you’ve learned?
 What impression did the dance make?
 What did you learn about dance from this performance?
 Did the performance create any questions for you?

Step 4:
Write the critique. Remember, when you voice an opinion, it must be backed up with actual
experiences. In other words, you can’t say “the dance was very emotionally moving”; you can say “the
slow, deliberate movements of the dancers expressed deep pain and grief”. Describe, don’t tell!

Step 5:
Reread, edit, proofread, read aloud, have someone else read your critique, and take it to the writing
center.
Remember to italicize the name of a dance just as you would the title of a book. Example: Giselle
(Talman, 2011)
c. What are the 21st century approaches to composition, creating, choreographing
and learning dance? How do we utilize such approaches in the learning and
understanding this course in dance?
Reference

https://us.humankinetics.com/blogs/excerpt/exploring-dance-composition

https://www.dictionary.com/browse/choreography

https://www.dictionary.com/browse/choreographer

https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/staging

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dance_science

https://www.slideshare.net/MichaelAnthonyChan/the-elements-and-principles-of-dance-
presentation

http://www.show-me-wow.com/a-thematic-approach/

https://ourpastimes.com/list-of-musical-techniques-and-their-meanings-12509022.html

https://integratedmovement-ideas.weebly.com/integrated-movement-ideas/somatics-in-
dance

https://libguides.dixie.edu/c.php?g=57906&p=371841